Half to james aken



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

A. L. TRAV'ER. BUTTON HOLE SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENT. No. 393 ,193. Patented Nov. 2-0, 1888.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. A. L. TRAVER.

BUTTON HOLE SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENT. No. 398,193. Patented Nov. 2-0, 1888.

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Mrs STATES ADELBERT LEE TRAVER, OF PHILMONT, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- HALF TO JAMES AKEN, OF SAME PLACE.

BUTTON-HOLE SEWING=MACHINE ATTACHMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 393,193, dated November 20, 1888.

Application filed January 27, 1887. Serial No. 225,672. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ADELBERT LEE TRAVER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philmont, in the county of Columbia and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Button-Hole Sewing Machine Attachments, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents an elevation of a sewing-machine with my improvements attached; Fig. 2, a horizontal section through the line w a; on Fig. 1. Fig. 3 isa detail showing some of the parts in a different position from that shown in Fig. 2. Fig. at is an end elevation showing the needle end of the machine with parts in the rear left out of view. Fig. 5 is a sectional detail of parts on an enlarged scale. Fig. 6 is a detail showing the connection between the brake-lever and the cloth-clamping device.

This improvement relates to an attachment for button-hole machines designed to automatically cut the button-hole when the latter has been nearly worked and to clamp and release the eloth; and the invention consists in the peculiar construction and arrangement and the combination of parts whereby these results are accomplished, as hereinafter more particularly described, and then definitely pointed out in the claims.

' Referring, now, to the details of the drawings, which represent my improvement attached to an ordinary button-hole sewing-machine, such as is now made by the Wheeler 85 Wilson Manufacturing Company, which machine it is here unnecessary to describe in detail, and I therefore only refer to it generally as having a frame, A, in which is journaled a main shaft, B, for giving the necessary motion to the different devices constituting the button-hole machine proper, which shaft is supplied with the usual clutch and driving pulley, and an eccentric which drives the rock-shaft D through the medium of a pitman and arm, (not shown,) which rock-shaft drives the needle-bar E through another arm and pitman in the usual manner. The shaft B also carriesthe cam G, which gives motion, through the ordinary lever and pitman, to the button-hole attachment in the ordinary and well-known way.

Having thus generally referred to the machine with which I prefer to employ my attachments, but without limiting myself to its use on said machine, I will now proceed to describe my invention.

Attached tothe-arm a of the frame is a pendant, H, on which is pivoted a lever, I, one end of which is provided with a frictionroller, J, and its other end carries a link, K, pivotally connected by a screw, it, with a cutter-bar, L, working in a tubular guide, M,

carried by a horizontal rod, N, sliding in suitable guides, or, firmly attached to or forming part of the arm a of the sewing-machine frame and connected with the button-hole clothmoving feed-wheel O by a vertical rod, P, and brace 1), so that the cutter-bar always moves with the wheel 0 as the latter reciprocates over the bed-plate of the machine, whereby the cutter attached to the bottom of the cutter-bar is always kept in line with the center of the cloth between the two lines of stitches that form-the button-hole stitching.

The tubular guide works in slotted guides a a, (one of which is shown broken away in Fig. 1,) and is provided with a slot, m, through which passes the screw it, connecting the link with the cutter-bar, and a lug, Z, to prevent the cutter-bar from turning in the tubular guide.

At Q on the feed-wheel O is shown an inclined plane or cam that, as the wheel revolves, lifts up one end of the lever I and consequently depresses the other, and thereby gives motion in a downward direction to the cutter-bar L and cutter. At the top of the bar L is a spiral spring, R,which finds its points of resistance between the top of the tube N and a collar, Z, on the top of the cutter-bar L, which spring always tends to raise the cutter-bar, and does so as soon as the inclined plane or cam Q has passed out of contact with the roller J on the end of the lever I, and the latter returns to its normal position.

On the opposite side of the machine from that shown in Fig. 1 is the usual brake-lever,

S, (see Fig. 6, which represents a portion of said opposite side with parts broken away,) which brake-lever is provided with a chain, 8, in the usual manner. Connected with this lever by another chain, 8, (or it may be a part of the same chain,) is an arm,T,made fast upon a bar, U, whose opposite ends are provided with trunnions which work in suitable standards firmly fixed to the bed-plate of the ma chine. This bar U, the arm T, and the chain 8 are so arranged and proportioned that as the lever U is depressed to throw the brake out of action the chain 8' pulls down the arm T, thus causing the bar U to'assume the position shown in full lines in Fig. 5 and depress the clamp Z upon the cloth in which the button-hole is to be formed. This bar and arm are normally held down by the brake-lever S,

whose short arm is caught and held by the latch V (pivoted at o) in a manner well known and therefore unnecessary to describe, so that when the lever is caught and held by the latch the arm T is held down by the chain 8; but as an additional means, or as one that may be employed by itself, I provide a keeper, V, pivoted at w above one ofthe standards supporting the bar U, which keeper normally rests on top of the arm T and so keeps that, and consequently the bar U, in the depressed position shown in Figs. 5 and 6. Upon the top of the feed-wheel O is shown a pin, 0, which as it passes around comes in contact with the hooked end w of the keeper and carries it oil" to one side, as shown in Fig. 3, whereby the arm T is free to rise when the lever U and chain 3 allow it. There is always a tendency of the arm T to rise, which is caused by a spring, X, which passes under the arm .2 of the clamp Z, which, reacting on the bar U, causes the arm T to rise unless held down by some extraneous means, such as the keeper \V or the lever S and chain 8.

To prevent the keeper WV from being forced upward by the pressure exerted by the spring X on the arm T, a screw, 10', is passed through a slotted hole in the keeper W into the top of one of the standards supporting the bar U, and the head of this screw sustains said keeper W against the pressure of the spring X.

Beneath the keeper and surrounding its pivot is a coiled spring, 10', (shown in dotted lines in Figs. 3 and 4,) whose object is to force the keeper over the top of the arm T as soon as the latter is drawn down by the chain 8, or otherwise.

The lower portion of the clamp 6 of the button-hole attachment is provided with ribs 7, (see Fig. 5,) which embrace a plate, 8, working in guides on the bed of the machine, which plate partakes of the motion of the button-hole attachment and moves with it in the direction of the length of the machine, but has no trans verse motion, the latter being prevented by the guides on the bed-plate in which said plate moves. This plate is slotted at 9 to allow of the passage of the cutter through it.

The operation is as follows: Supposing the machine to be at rest, brake Y in action on the fly-wheel, and the arm T, bar U, and clamp in the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5, the cloth in which the button-hole is to be made is set in the proper position under the clamp. The operator, by drawing down the lever S by means of his foot,in the usual manner, throws the brake off of the wheel, and by the same operation pulls down the arm T, thus depressing the long side of the bar U, which in turn presses upon the clamp-arm z, and thus presses the clamp upon the cloth. As soon as the latch V catches the short end of the brake-lever the clamp is firmly secured in place upon the cloth; or without this the cloth would be securely clamped because the keeper W", (under the pressure of the spring 10",) sliding over the top of the arm T,will prevent the latter from rising. The machine being now put in operation and the sewing of the buttonhole nearly completed, the inclined plane or cam Q commences to force down the cutter-bar by means of the lever I andlink K, and as the sewing progresses toward the finish the cutter descends its entire distance, and thus cuts the button-hole, and as soon as the roller J drops off the end of the cam Q the cutter-bar and the cutter are caused by the springR to rise rapidly to their highest position. button-hole is finished,the latch is thrown out by a pin, 2, on the feed wheel-(shown in dot- When theted lines in Fig. 2) pushing out the lever 3 in a manner well know-n, which liberates the lever S, and thus the spring 4 on the brakerod 5 brings the brakein contact with the fly-wheel of the machine and causes it to stop. At the same time, or substantially so, the pin 0 on the feed-wheel 0 comes in contact with the hook w of the keeper W and throws it into the position shown in Fig. 3, and thus the arm '1 is free to rise and the clamp Z is raised clear of the cloth by the spring X, when the cloth may be moved and adjusted to make another button-hole, and the operation is repeated.

From the above description it will be seen that as the brake is taken off the wheel and the machine started in the ordinary manner the clamp is pressed down upon the cloth without any further movement of the operator, and that the button-hole is automatically cut during the process of the sewing by a single gradual descent of the cutter, and that at the completion of the button-hole the machine is not only automatically stopped, but the clamp is lifted off of the surface of the cloth simultaneously, or substantially so, with the stoppage of the machine, which results in a great saving of time, so that a much larger number of button-holes may be made in a day with my improvement than can be made without it.

Having thus described the preferable form of my invention, but without limiting myself to the particular construction shown, what I claim as new is 1. The combination,in abutton-hole sewing-- machine, of the stitch-forming and cloth-moving mechanism thereof, with a slotted throatplate connected to and vibrating with the cloth-moving mechanism, a cutter and cutterbar, a cam for operating the same, connections between the cutter-bar and the cam, and connections between the cloth-moving mechanism and the cutter-bar, whereby the cutter-bar is vibrated and the cutter operated simultaneously with the movement of the cloth-moving mechanism.

2. The combination,in a button-hole sewingmachine, of the stitch-forming and cloth-moving mechanism thereof, with a slotted throatplate connected to and vibrating with the cloth-moving mechanism, a cutter and cutterbar, a cam for operating the same, connections between the cutter-bar and the cam, and connections'between the cam and the cloth-moving mechanism, whereby the cam and the cutter-bar are vibrated and the cutter is operated simultaneously with the movement of the cloth-moving mechanism.

3. The combination,in abutton-hole sewingmachine, of the stitch-forming and cloth-moving mechanism thereof, with a slotted throatplate connected to and vibrating with the cloth-moving mechanism, a cutter and cutterbar, a cam, Q, for operating the same, the lever I and spring R, and connections between the cloth-moving mechanism and the cutterbar, whereby the cutter-bar is vibrated and the cutter operated simultaneously with the movement of the cloth-moving mechanism.

4. The combinatiomin a button-hole sewingmachine and with the stitching and clothholding mechanism thereof and with the feedwheel and needle-guiding arm of the same, of

a cam traveling with said feed-wheel, a lever operated by said cam, a vibrating slotted throat-plate, a vertically moving cutter-bar operatively connected with said lever, and guides supported by and moving laterally on the needle-guiding arm at right angles to the slot in the throat-plate and constructed to hold and guide the cutter-bar vertically, substantially as described.

5. The combinatiomwith the stitch-forming and cloth-holding mechanism of a button-hole sewing-machine and the feed-wheel of the same, of a cam traveling with said feed-wheel, a lever operated by the cam, a cutter-bar operatively connected with said lever, a tubular guide carrying said cutter-bar, and "interme diate mechanism, substantially as described, between the tubular guide and the feed-wheel, whereby their lateral reciprocating movements correspond with each other, substantially as described.

6. The combinatiomwith the stitch-forming and cloth-holding mechanism of a button-hole sewing-machine and the feed-Wheel thereof, of a cam mounted on said wheel, a lever operated by the same, a cutter-bar operatively connected with the lever, a tubular guide carrying the cutter-bar, and a horizontal rod carrying the tubular guide and connected with the feed-wheel bya rigid connection, whereby the reciprocating movement of the feed-wheel is communicated to the cutter-bar, substan tially as described.

7. The combination,in a button-holesewingmachine having an automatically-reciprocating and laterally-moving cutter and cutterbar, the latter moving in guides on the arm a of the machine, and a cloth-clamp, of a th roatplate provided with a slot for the passage of the cutter and means for moving it in correspondence with the lateral movement of the cutter-bar, substantially as described.

8. The combination, in the cloth-clamp of a button-hole sewing-machine, of an eccentric ally-pivoted bar, U, acting on the same, the lever T, attached to said bar, the keeper W, for holding down said lever, the spring X, and the pin 0, mounted on the feed-wheel for automatically relieving the pressure on the clamp, substantially as described.

9. The combination,in a button-hole sewingmachine, of a cloth-clamp and a clutch, with thelever S, connected with the clutch, thelever T, connected with the clamp-operating device, and an intermediate connection, as the chain 8, whereby the movement of the lever Ssimultaneously operates both clutch and clamp, substantially as described.

10. The combination, in abuttou-hole sewlug-machine, of a cloth-clamp, a feed-wheel,

and a clutch, with the lever 3, the latch V, le-

ver S, connected with the clutch, the pin 2, carried by the feed-wheel and operating on the lever 3, the lever T, connected with the lever S and the clamp-operating device, the keeper NV, operating on the lever T, and the pin 0, carried by the feed-Wheel and operating on the keeper, substantially as described.

11. The combination, with a button-hole sewing-machine and with the stitching and the cloth-holding and the feeding mechanism thereof, and a substantially-vertical guide supported by the arm of the machine, and means for moving it at right angles to the length of the slot in the throat-plate, of a cutter-bar working in said guide, a cutter, and a slotted throat-plate for said cutter, both connected to and moving with the cloth-feeding mechanism, substantially as described.

12. The combination, with a button-hole sewing-machine and with the stitching, the cloth -holding, and the feeding mechanism thereof, of a substantially vertical guide, a horizontally-moving rod carrying the same and connected with the cloth-feeding mechanism, a cutter-bar working in said guide, a cutter, means'for operating said cutter-bar and cut ter, and a slotted throat-plate, both connected and moving with the clotlrfeeding mechanism, substantially as described.

13. The combination, in a button-hole sewing-machine and with the stitching and clothholding mechanism thereof, of aslotted throat- IIO plate, a cutter-bar, a cutter, a cam-lever and in presence of two witnesses, this 21st day of link for operating said cutter-bar and cutter, January, 1887.

andatubularguideforthecutter-bar provided with a slot to allow of the link and euttenbar ADELBERT LEE TR AVER' 5 being operatively connected, substantially as Witnesses:

described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature,

H. P. HORTON, R. V. L. CAMERON. 

